J.K. Rowling Published 'The Cuckoo's Calling' Under A "Liberating" Pseudonym

'Harry Potter' author, J.K. Rowling authored a crime novel under a pseudonym. 'The Cuckoo's Calling', before the author's unmasking, sold less than 500 copies. The author, following investigation by a British newspaper, admitted to having written the crime novel on Sunday (14th July).

J.K. Rowling, author of the hugely popular Harry Potter series, admitted she had published a detective novel under the pseudonym 'Robert Galbraith'. Her announcement was made on Sunday 14th July after a newspaper followed up on a hunch that the 'two' authors shared very similar writing styles. The novel, entitled The Cuckoo's Calling, was published in April of this year. Despite receiving critical acclaim the novel sold less than 500 copies.

J.K.Rowling at the London premiere of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 in 2011.

One publishing house, Orion, has admitted their mistake in turning down the novel. The publishing director, Kate Mills, said Rowling's latest work was "perfectly decent, but quiet". She continued to say that it was "well written" but concerned that "it didn't stand out". Mills claimed this is a serious problem when attempting to launch "new authors" in crime fiction when it is already "a very crowded market".

The novel was published under the name 'Robert Galbraith'. Rowling's imagining continued beyond the boundaries of her fictional work. She went so far as to create a backstory for her author who had worked in the military police and later in the private security sector.

After detective work carried out by The Sunday Times, the author admitted to being the author. She said: "I had hoped to keep this secret a little longer because being Robert Galbraith has been such a liberating experience." She went on to comment that it "has been wonderful to publish without hype or expectation" and that she especially enjoyed receiving impartial feedback.

Since her unveiling as the author, The Cuckoo's Calling sale figures have shot up dramatically with its position in the Amazon sellers list having moved up thousands (from 5076th to 1st).

The 47-year-old shot to fame after her Harry Potter books became world renowned and much loved best-sellers. They appear on numerous lists of need-to-read literary works and are the best-selling series of books in history.

The books were adapted into eight films which helped launch the careers of Daniel Radcliffe, who played Harry Potter, and Emma Watson and Rupert Grint (Hermione and Ron). In addition to films Rowling's concept has spawned a vast franchise including Harry Potter games, tourist attractions, clothing, Lego, figurines and board games.

Emma Watson, who played 'Hermione' in the Harry Potter films, at the Bling Ring premiere in L.A.